A Bed in the Nursery

Look closely at these pictures. Do you see what they have in common? Some may say, "Oh, a bed in the nursery." But me, I say, "the solution to keep from going completely insane from sleep deprivation after the baby is born."

One of the most difficult things about new motherhood can be the sleep deprivation. In my attempts to maximize sleep in the postpartum weeks, I've tried every possible nighttime configuration (crib in my room, baby in my bed, husband on sofa, baby in bouncer chair, me on sofa, all 3 of us on the floor, etc).

By baby #3, I figured it out. Even though her little nursery is tiny, I squeezed a bed for me in there. And even though I had the least nighttime help from my husband with baby #3 (he has a rotten work schedule) and even with two other kids to care for, I was the least sleep deprived this time around. Being able to crash in her room while feeding and caring for her at night was the answer for me.

How about you? What solutions have you worked out with your design choices to battle sleep deprivation?